Port Harcourt Refinery Not Producing Petrol Prior to Shutdown – Marketers
The Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN) has said the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) had to shut down the Port Harcourt Refining Company to save its face.
IPMAN said the facility’s shutdown is insignificant to the Nigerian petrol market, stressing that the plant did not produce petrol for about three months before its eventual shutdown.
The Petroleum Products Retail Outlet Owners Association of Nigeria argued that the facility will be of no value without the Premium Motor Spirit (petrol) blending unit, adding that 30 days will not be enough to complete the repair exercise.
In an interview with PUNCH, IPMAN’s Publicity Secretary, Chinedu Ukadike, argued that the refinery had not produced any fuel in the past few months, wondering why the NNPC was just announcing a shutdown now.
It was earlier reported that the NNPC announced the shutdown of the plant on Saturday. The facility would be shut down for a month for maintenance. According to the NNPC Chief Corporate Communications Officer, Olufemi Soneye, the shutdown commenced on Saturday, May 24.
Soneye said, “NNPC Ltd wishes to inform the general public that the Port Harcourt Refining Company will undergo a planned maintenance shutdown. This scheduled maintenance and sustainability assessment will commence on May 24, 2025.” He added that the company was working with relevant stakeholders to ensure efficiency and transparency during the exercise.
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Responding, Ukadike maintained that the 60,000-barrel-capacity refinery has not produced petrol in the past few months after it was declared operational in November. According to the IPMAN leader, the new leadership of the NNPC ought to have ordered a complete overhaul of the facility, saying the announcement of a shutdown was just to save face.
Ukadike stated, “For all these days, we have been buying petrol from the Dangote Refinery, and some others are importing. The shutdown of the Port Harcourt is insignificant. It does not affect anybody. The refinery has been down for years before it was rehabilitated and reopened last year; now, they are shutting it down again.”
He further questioned the timing of the shutdown, saying, “That means something is wrong. To the best of my knowledge, the refinery has not been producing anything in the past three months. This shutdown is just to save their face.”
On Saturday, the spokesperson of the Petroleum Products Retail Outlet Owners Association of Nigeria, Joseph Obele, insisted that the refinery had been shut down since Thursday. He feared that the shutdown might lead to job losses and fuel scarcity.
In a statement on Sunday, PETROAN President Billy Gillis-Harry expressed concerns over the development. According to him, though the refinery’s shutdown for maintenance is expected, the association wants the NNPC to adhere to the scheduled 30-day repair timeline to minimise disruptions to petroleum product supply.
Gillis-Harry said, “PETROAN fears that the 30-day schedule might not be realistic due to usual bottlenecks, potentially leading to further delays and exacerbating supply challenges.” He demanded the inclusion of a PMS blending unit in the maintenance activity and timely completion of the work.
The PETROAN president also recommended that the Minister of Petroleum set up a task force comprising all petroleum industry stakeholders to monitor the 30-day repairs and ensure transparency and accountability.
Meanwhile, NNPC spokesperson Soneye had earlier debunked claims of sabotage, saying the maintenance would ensure the safe and sustainable operation of the refinery.
